Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill, 2025

Syllabus: GS2/ Education/ Governance

Context

• Several universities and higher education institutions have demanded a separate grant-disbursing authority under the proposed Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill, 2025.

Key Features of the Bill

• Regulatory Body:  The Bill establishes the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (the Commission) as an apex regulatory authority for higher education.
  • It replaces the University Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE). The Commission will comprise the Regulatory, Accreditation, and Standards Councils.  
  • It will regulate technical education, teacher-training, and architecture education.  Other professional courses, such as medicine and law have been excluded from its purview.
• Composition of the Commission:  The Commission will consist of a Chairperson and up to 12 members.  Members include:
  • The Presidents of the three Councils,
  • The higher education secretary of the central government,
  • The five eminent experts, and 
  • Two eminent academicians from state HEIs. The Chairperson will be selected by the central government. 
• Composition of the Councils:  Each Council will consist of 14 members headed by a President.  Members will include eminent experts, one nominee of the Union Department of Higher Education, and nominees of the other two Councils.
• Functions of the Councils: The Regulatory Council will be responsible for establishing and ensuring compliance with minimum standards for setting up an HEI, facilitating the autonomy of HEIs in a timely manner, and addressing grievances received from stakeholders against HEIs.
  • The Standards Council will be responsible for framing learning outcomes for higher education programmes, and minimum academic standards for HEIs.  
  • The Accreditation Council will be responsible for developing an accreditation framework and system for HEIs.
• Removal of members:  The Chairperson, Presidents, or any full-time members of the Commission or the Councils may be removed on grounds of; insolvency, conviction of offence involving moral turpitude, physical or mental incapacity, or abuse of powers.
• Right to confer degrees:  Degrees may be granted only by:
  • A university (established by a central or state Act or deemed under the UGC Act, 1956), or 
  • An institution specially empowered by a central Act, or
  • Other HEIs authorised by the Regulatory Council with the prior approval of the central government.

Key Issue of the Bill

• Autonomy of HEIs: The Bill’s provisions may not significantly improve the autonomy of higher education institutions (HEIs). In some cases, autonomy already granted to HEIs may be rolled back.
  • Currently, institutes of national importance are governed under their specific laws, with academic and research autonomy.  
  • The Bill brings such institutes under the purview of the Commission and its Councils.
• Funding: Allocating and granting funds is a key function of the UGC.
  • The Bill does not include this as a function of the Commission or its Councils.  
  • The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 had recommended setting up a single regulator with four verticals for regulation, accreditation, funding, and standard setting.  The Bill sets up three of these, excluding funding.
• The Bill treats professional courses inconsistently.
  • Technical, management, and teacher education will come under the VBSA Commission.
  • Architecture education will be regulated by the Commission, while the Council of Architecture will continue as a professional body.
  • Medical, legal, and certain other professional courses remain outside its ambit.
• Appeals against decisions of the Councils will be made to the central government.  This is unlike the procedure for other regulators, such as SEBI and TRAI.
• Grounds for removal of part-time members not provided.

Significance 

• The present bill represents a renewed effort to implement the NEP 2020 vision, incorporating a more comprehensive framework that includes technical and teacher education oversight under the new authority.
• Under NEP 2020, the concept of a single regulator was highlighted as part of a broader repositioning of higher education governance. 
• The policy recommended separating regulatory functions to reduce duplication and improve efficiency while maintaining accountability.

Source: TH